1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to magnifiers and, more specifically, to a portable magnifier for hand-held portable electronic devices, such as portable digital assistants (PDAs), personal organizers, global positioning system (GPS) units, palm-top computers, and portable electronic game devices. The present invention also relates to an apparatus for supporting a portable electronic device and equipped with an optical element for magnifying indicia displayed on a display of the portable electronic device.
2. Background of the Invention
Hand-held portable electronic devices have become increasingly popular for both personal and commercial use. With their increase in popularity, hand-held portable electronic devices and their information display have also been undergoing miniaturization to facilitate storage and portability. Examples of popular hand-held portable electronic devices incorporating a display include portable digital assistants (PDAs), personal organizers, global positioning system (GPS) units, digital music players, and portable electronic game devices.
However, the display of the foregoing popular hand-held portable electronic devices may be difficult for a user to view for several reasons. For example, with particular reference to assimilation of information through the eyes, the problems associated with small characters in a display are well known. If the user has poor eye sight due to age, illness, infirmity or otherwise, these problems are compounded. Another problem arises when the hand-held portable electronic devices are mounted in holders or mounting structures in vehicles, such as motor vehicles, airplanes and boats. The display of such hand-held portable electronic devices may be difficult for a vehicle operator to view because of the distance from the operator to the holder. This problem can be compounded by miniaturization of the hand-held portable electronic devices and the correspondingly decreasing size of displays as set forth above.
Several approaches have been proposed to solve the foregoing problems with viewing and reading information from displays of hand-held portable electronic devices. One proposed solution is to enlarge the characters by increasing the physical size of the display beyond the size of a housing of the hand-held portable electronic device. However, this poses problems in ergonomics, structural integrity, and reliability. For example, if a liquid crystal display (LCD) is used for the display, the LCD requires a rigid mounting structure which is isolated from mechanical shock to prevent breakage of the LCD. If an enlarged LCD is mounted in a manner which allows it to protrude from the housing, the criteria of maintaining structural integrity, high reliability, and acceptable ergonomics cannot be met.
Techniques for enlarging characters displayed within a display of an electronic device are also known. For example, electronic devices have been equipped with electronic circuitry that electronically enlarges display characters for easier reading when the electronic device is connected to a vehicular adapter or upon the user actuating a button of the electronic device. Unfortunately, the addition of character enlarging circuitry increases the complexity of electronic devices and increases manufacturing costs. Furthermore, less information can be displayed within a given display area when characters are enlarged within the display.
Magnification devices permanently attached to hand-held portable electronic devices are also known. However, these configurations are inconvenient to use, particularly when magnification of the displays of the hand-held portable electronic devices is not necessary. For example, magnification of a display of a hand-held portable electronic device at close distance may be unnecessary and may be distracting to a user.
Another approach taken to solve the foregoing problems of viewing displays of hand-held portable electronic devices has been the use of hand-held magnifying lenses. However, such an approach tends to be cumbersome because it does not leave the hands of the user free to perform other tasks, such as writing, during the viewing process because hand-held magnifying lenses require continuous support and manipulation by the user. Hand-held magnifying lenses also require careful control of distance from the display being read in order to maintain a reasonably constant amount of magnification.